Five st. louis professionals share their top tips and tricks for staying healthy amidst their busy lifestyles.

No one ever said maintaining a healthy lifestyle is easy—but it doesn’t have to be a total drag, either. These five St. Louisans fit fitness into their lifestyles—and have fun in the process—by staying loyal to their workout routines, eating healthy and simply enjoying life. Get inspired by these top tips and tricks for being fit for real.

Joanna Dettmann, 36Co-Founder/President, tSunela Digital Marketing

What’s your go-to workout? CrossFit; I haven’t found anything else with better results. If I have more than an hour, I bike (30+ miles) or go for a long run (10+ miles).What hobbies help you keep an active lifestyle? I enjoy charity work—there’s always something you can do to help others and be active at the same time. Also, cooking for a healthy lifestyle. I’m a big fan of the Paleo diet; it has changed how I perform as an athlete and how I feel in general.What routines in your everyday life help you stay healthy? Pre-planning meals, scheduling workouts with family and friends, finding healthy snacks and not being afraid to tell a waiter to leave something out of my order.What’s your biggest fitness pet peeve? When I talk myself out of running longer, biking further, swimming more laps or not finishing that last rep. And, the phrase, “I can’t.” I believe you can do anything you put your mind to.What is one of your current fitness goals? I’m training for the Ironman Kansas 70.3 in June and then possibly another full 140.6 Ironman in the fall.What is the hardest part about staying healthy and fit in your profession? Sitting at a desk most days is not the most active of careers. But, I wake up early to fit a work out in or go at lunch to be more effective in the office.What is your best tip or trick for working health and fitness into your busy lifestyle? I have a group that meets once a week at Forest Park to run—we call it “6@6” for six miles at 6am. It keeps you accountable. You better believe when one of us misses it, we call each other out for it.

Jay Perez, 37 Attorney at Law, Korein Tillery, LLC

What’s your go-to workout? It’s definitely weight training. I’ve been doing it for 20 years, and it gives me the best results and keeps me in good spirits!What hobbies help you keep an active lifestyle? I really enjoy hiking, taking my dogs to the park and practicing yoga. Being surrounded by nature is centering, and yoga is great for flexibility.What routines in your everyday life help you stay healthy? I’m very concerned about the health effects of eating processed foods and pesticides on produce, so I cook most of my meals using predominantly organic whole foods. I make large portions on the weekends that I heat up for dinner during busy weekdays.What’s your biggest fitness pet peeve? First, disproportionate weight training (building your upper body and neglecting your legs). Second, bad form when lifting weights, usually caused by attempting to lift more weight than you actually can.What’s your go-to healthy meal or snack? Brown rice, stewed beans and some avocado. I’m Puerto Rican; we can eat that every day!What is one of your current fitness goals? To get back into running weekly. I used to run around Forest Park once a week after work, and I miss that.What health or fitness trend are you completely into right now? I’m extremely fortunate that our law firm has a gym on site and an amazing fitness trainer on staff. My trainer has me doing circuit training, which really leans you out.What is your best tip or trick for working health and fitness into your busy lifestyle? There are no tricks! Fitness is something you either commit to or you don’t. If it’s truly a priority for you, you will make time—and reap the rewards.

Mike Sundet, 42 Vice President of Marketing, Bud Light

What’s your go-to workout? Either a 5K run or a longer bike/run, followed by some conditioning and free weights.What routines in your everyday life help you stay healthy? It’s hard to have a “routine” with a hectic schedule. The key for me is maintaining flexibility and making my workouts a priority.What workout gear or accessory can’t you live without? My Garmin watch. I travel a lot, so I run in cities all over the country. It’s great to just run out the door of a hotel and know exactly how far I’ve gone and at what pace.What’s your biggest fitness pet peeve? Infomercials proclaiming unbelievable results by working just a few minutes a day. Staying fit isn’t complicated, but it does take time and dedication. There are no shortcuts.How do you manage to eat healthy while on-the-go? Eating healthy is a lot harder to do when you’re traveling and eating out all the time. I stay away from fast food and focus on grilled chicken or fish and vegetables.What is one of your current fitness goals? The last couple of years, I’ve been focused on long-distance triathlons. I’d like to do an ultramarathon within the next year.What is the hardest part about staying healthy and fit in your profession? There are a lot of fun people in the beer business, which leads to some late nights out. It’s not always easy to answer a 5am wake-up call on a few hours of sleep, but I always have more energy when I start the day with a workout.

Courtney Hopson, 33Owner/Jewelry Designer, CODI

What’s your go-to workout? I run 3.5 miles around my neighborhood or catch a total body training class at Nutriformance. You sweat a lot and get a great aerobic workout in just an hour.What hobbies help you keep an active lifestyle? Having three kids in five years! I don’t sit down all day until dinner. I’m constantly doing something.What routines in your everyday life help you stay healthy? I eat healthy and work out regularly. I never watch TV during the day, I never nap, and I get massages a couple of times a month.What workout gear or accessory can’t you live without? lululemon headbands. I can’t stand when my hair flops in my face when I’m running or jumping around in class.What’s your biggest fitness pet peeve? Workout pants and tops that are too short!What’s your go-to healthy meal or snack? FAGE Greek yogurt with fresh blueberries, raspberries and bananas or a chocolate chip cookie dough Balance Bar.What is your best tip or trick for working health and fitness into your busy lifestyle? Make a reasonable and realistic workout plan and stick to it! Once you make working out a part of your lifestyle and daily routine, you feel guilty when you miss a day, and it keeps you going. Everybody is super busy, and nobody else is going to make you do it. You need to want to work out in order to make it happen.

Vickie Newton, 46 News Anchor, KMOV

What’s your go-to workout? Walking is my go-to exercise. When I have more time, I like the treadmill and light weights.What routines in your everyday life help you stay healthy? I drink a lot of water, eat fruits and vegetables, and keep a bowl of nuts at home for snacking. Plus, Greek yogurt is a staple. Those are my efforts to offset all of the coffee I drink and the MOWs (moments of weakness) when I surrender to hamburgers, fries and brownies.What workout gear or accessory can’t you live without? I have a pair of black Nike workout pants that I bought several years ago. They’re grayish-black after so many washings, but I love them because they are comfortable and shape-enhancing.What’s your go-to healthy meal or snack? Pan-seared fish, brown rice and steamed vegetables.What is one of your current fitness goals? To tighten my abdominal muscles.What health or fitness trend are you completely into right now? Sleep. I think naps are the answer to most everything, including good health.What is the hardest part about staying healthy and fit in your profession? Like most everyone, I wish I had more hours in the day.What is your best tip or trick for working health and fitness into your busy lifestyle? I always take the stairs at the studio, and I wear high heels for much of the day to work out my calves. I also have a small refrigerator where I keep Greek yogurt, juice and fruit.